15 of the hardest words to spell in the English language

5 of 16

Ingenious

Like “sacrilegious,” “ingenious” is another word that’s so similar to another in both sound and meaning that people conclude that they’re spelled the same way. “Ingenious” means very clever and intelligent. A “genius” is a very clever, intelligent person. But, alas, the final syllables of “ingenious” are not spelled like “genius.” It dates back to a Latin word, ingeniosus, meaning “natural disposition.”